By: Mike Riley

In Psalm 34:14, the Psalmist tells us regarding peace: “Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.”

Unity in the church, the home, and the community are both “good and pleasant.” King David said, “Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity” (Psalm 133:1). Christians are to be seekers of peace and not promoters of ill will. We should strive to be “perfectly joined together in the same mind and the same judgment”
 (1 Corinthians 1:10).

Seek Good for Brethren

Love for God and one another will lead us to seek the best interest of the brethren. Peter said, “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently” (1 Peter 1:22).

Hear And Obey God’s Truth

As children of God, we must hear and obey our heavenly Father. We must accept whatever He has taught in His Word. The same truth applies to all persons alike, to those within His spiritual family as well as to those outside. The Bible is the authority which is binding in heaven and on the earth and it will one day judge each one of us (Matthew 16:19; John 12:48
cf. 2 Timothy 3:16-17).

 Conflicts Will Arise

We know that from time-to-time problems of conflict will arise to give us concern. Out of our love for the truth and souls of people, we should seek to deal with these problems fairly and sincerely. We always want to do what is right (Proverbs 15:9; Proverbs 21:21; Matthew 5:6; 1 Tim. 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:22). As we deal with these problems we should ask, “What are the facts in the case, and not hear-say?” If two parties are involved, have we learned the facts first-hand from them? Do both give reliable reports?

Conclusion

By inspiration, James gives us inspired instructions concerning conflicts. “Speak not evil one of another, brethren” (James 4:11). In earlier verses he describes the working of heavenly wisdom: “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace” (James 3:17-18). When biblical wisdom and principles are applied to situations of conflict, peace and harmony should be the result.

By: Mike Riley

The greatest activity we can spend time doing is worshipping God. Worship is not repeating hasty, routine petitions or listening to mood-inducing music. Worship is the experience of being “lost in wonder, love, and praise,” as Charles Wesley wrote — Awe inspires adoration.

When my wife and I first saw the awe-inspiring Grand Canyon, it left us speechless. We gazed at this magnificent spectacle and thought, “This is a glimpse of God’s majesty.” However, our awe by itself was not worship.

Our reaction is different when we come face to face with Jesus in the Scriptures. Awe changes into adoration as we behold Him in all His majestic beauty. Let us for a moment consider what grips our soul by His Majesty:

• His unsullied purity “Which of you convicts Me of sin?” (John 8:46).
• His unrivaled wisdom “No man ever spoke like this Man!” (John 7:46).
• His unbounded pity — “When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion” (Matthew 9:36).  
• His overwhelming majesty — “He was transfigured before them” (Matthew 17:2).

As we see Jesus in the Gospels, our awe changes to adoration. Let us bow in worship and exclaim along with doubting Thomas — “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).

Finish then thy new creation, Pure,
unspotted, may we be Let
us see our whole salvation Perfectly
secured by Thee.
Changed from glory into glory, Till in heaven
we take our place, Till we cast our crowns
before Thee, Lost in wonder, love, and
praise.

Charles Wesley

By: Mike Riley

The Church is not made up of people who believe they are better than others, but rather it is made up of those who realize that they should be better than they are and must continually strive to do better (Philippians 3:12-16).

By: Mike Riley

Over the past fifty years, this writer has observed a slowly deteriorating society concerning the characteristic of “trust.” With all the terrorist news reports (i.e., Boston bombing, etc.) and the installation of another vast bureaucracy called “Homeland Security” (do we feel secure yet?), we have become far less trusting of other folks than ever before in our nation‘s history.

Because of a lack of trust, people now have to be thoroughly checked out at airports via X-ray screening technology before they can board an airplane. When we enter any kind of business establishment, there are cameras everywhere, tracking our every move, by and large telling us that we’re not really customers at all, but rather potential robbers and thieves, further causing a lack of trust to exist.